October 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to approve a request from Louisiana for EPA to relax the federal Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) standard applicable to gasoline introduced into commerce from June 1 to September 15 of each year for the Louisiana parishes of East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, Livingston, Ascension, and Iberville (the Baton Rouge Area). Specifically, EPA is approving amendments to the regulations to allow the gasoline RVP standard for the Baton Rouge Area to change from 7.8 pounds per square inch (psi) to 9.0 psi. EPA has determined that this change to the federal RVP regulation is consistent with the applicable provisions of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

This guidance relates to section 1332 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and its implementing regulations. Section 1332 provides the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of the Treasury (collectively, the Secretaries) with the discretion to approve a state's proposal to waive specific provisions of the PPACA (a State Innovation Waiver, now also referred to as a State Relief and Empowerment Waiver), provided the section 1332 state plan meets certain requirements. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of the Treasury (collectively, the Departments) finalized implementing regulations on February 27, 2012. This updated guidance provides supplementary information about the requirements that must be met for the approval of a State Innovation Waiver, the Secretaries' application review procedures, the calculation of pass-through funding, certain analytical requirements, and operational considerations. This guidance supersedes the guidance related to section 1332 of the PPACA that was previously published on December 16, 2015. Changes include increasing flexibility with respect to the manner in which a section 1332 state plan may meet section 1332 standards in order to be eligible to be approved by the Secretaries, clarifying the adjustments the Secretaries may make to maintain federal deficit neutrality, and allowing for states to use existing legislative authority to authorize section 1332 waivers in certain scenarios. The Departments are committed to empowering states to innovate in ways that will strengthen their health insurance markets, expand choices of coverage, target public resources to those most in need, and meet the unique circumstances of each state. This guidance aims to lower barriers to innovation for states seeking to reform their health insurance markets.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for Glasflugel Models Club Libelle 205, H 301 ``Libelle,'' H 301B ``Libelle,'' Kestrel, Mosquito, Standard ``Libelle,'' and Standard Libelle-201B gliders. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) issued by the aviation authority of another country to identify and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI describes the unsafe condition as jamming between the double two-ring end of the towing cable and the deflector angles of the center of gravity (C.G.) release mechanism. We are issuing this AD to require actions to address the unsafe condition on these products.

We are superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2017-01-02, which applied to certain The Boeing Company Model 787-8 and 787-9 airplanes. AD 2017-01-02 required an inspection for discrepant inboard and outboard trailing edge flap rotary actuators, and replacing the rotary actuator or doing related investigative and corrective actions if necessary. This AD continues to retain those actions. This AD also adds airplanes to the applicability and reduces the number of affected actuators. This AD was prompted by a report indicating that some inboard and outboard trailing edge flap rotary actuators may have been assembled with an incorrect no-back brake rotor-stator stack sequence during manufacturing. We are issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

During a review of Texas' regulations, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) identified State-initiated changes to its hazardous waste program under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The EPA has determined that these changes are minor and satisfy all requirements needed to qualify for Final authorization and is proposing to authorize the State-initiated changes. This rule also proposes to codify in the regulations the prior approval of Texas' hazardous waste management program and incorporate by reference authorized provisions of the State's statutes and regulations.

NMFS announces that the State of Maine is transferring a portion of its 2018 commercial summer flounder quota to the State of Connecticut. This quota adjustment is necessary to comply with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan quota transfer provisions. This announcement informs the public of the revised commercial quotas for Maine and Connecticut.

The New England Fishery Management Council requests public comment on Amendment 22 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan, including a Draft Environmental Impact Statement. To meet the purpose and need, this amendment proposes alternatives that would initiate a limited access program for the small-mesh multispecies fishery, adjust whiting and red hake possession limits, and modify permit types and characteristics to make them consistent with limited access. The Council recently solicited comments and held a series of public hearings on the draft amendment. Due to an inconsistency in the information available during the comment period, the Council will solicit comments for an additional 30 days and hold an informational webinar to explain the data inconsistency and review the alternatives in the amendment and Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

This final rule will adjust the number of members on the United Soybean Board (Board) to reflect changes in production levels that have occurred since the Board was last reapportioned in 2015. As required by the Soybean Promotion, Research, and Consumer Information Act (Act), membership on the Board is reviewed every 3 years and adjustments are made accordingly. This change will result in an increase in Board membership for five States, increasing the total number of Board members from 73 to 78. These changes will be reflected in the Soybean Promotion and Research Order (Order) and would be effective for the 2019 appointment process.

In this final rule, NMFS specifies a 2018 limit of 2,000 metric tons (t) of longline-caught bigeye tuna for each U.S. Pacific territory (American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI)). NMFS will allow each territory to allocate up to 1,000 t each year to U.S. longline fishing vessels in a valid specified fishing agreement. As an accountability measure, NMFS will monitor, attribute, and restrict (if necessary), catches of longline- caught bigeye tuna, including catches made under a specified fishing agreement. These catch limits and accountability measures support the long-term sustainability of fishery resources of the U.S. Pacific Islands.

On September 24, 2018, DoD, GSA, and NASA published a document proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement a section of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017. The document heading carried an incorrect docket number. This document carries the correct docket number.

The Department of Labor proposes a regulation under title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations to expand access to affordable quality retirement saving options by clarifying the circumstances under which an employer group or association or a professional employer organization (PEO) may sponsor a workplace retirement plan. In particular, the proposed regulation clarifies that employer groups or associations and PEOs can, when satisfying certain criteria, constitute ``employers'' within the meaning of section 3(5) of ERISA for purposes of establishing or maintaining an individual account ``employee pension benefit plan'' within the meaning of ERISA section 3(2). As an ``employer,'' a group or association can sponsor a defined contribution retirement plan for its members, as can a PEO sponsor a plan for client employers (collectively referred to as ``MEPs'' unless otherwise specified). The proposed regulation would allow different businesses to join a MEP, either through a group or association or through a PEO. The proposal would also permit certain working owners without employees to participate in a MEP sponsored by a group or association. The proposal would primarily affect groups or associations of employers, PEOs, plan participants, and plan beneficiaries. The proposal would not affect whether groups, associations, or PEOs assume joint-employment relationships with member-employers or client employers. But the proposal may affect banks, insurance companies, securities broker- dealers, record keepers, and other commercial enterprises that provide retirement-plan products and services.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is seeking public comments on the effects and costs that would result if BIS were to amend its regulations to reflect new export authorization requirements regarding electronic waste, including new recordkeeping requirements, reporting requirements, and data elements in the Automated Export System, maintained by the U.S. Census Bureau, to track electronic waste that is exported. Comments from all interested persons are welcome and will help BIS determine the feasibility and cost of implementing a mechanism for tracking and controlling electronic waste exports.

The Coast Guard has issued a temporary deviation from the operating schedule that governs the State Route 433 Bridge across Bonfouca Bayou, mile 7.0, at Slidell, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana. This deviation is necessary to perform maintenance. This deviation allows the bridge to remain in the closed-to-navigation position during nighttime hours for approximately 42 days.

The Department of the Army is proposing revisions regarding the development, operation, maintenance, and administration of the Army Cemeteries. The revisions include changes in management and a name change to the Army National Military Cemeteries. The rule also adopts modifications suggested by the Department of the Army Inspector General and approved by the Secretary of the Army, as well as implementing changes in interment eligibility due to statute.

We are superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2018-11-05 for certain Honda Aircraft Company LLC (Honda) Model HA-420 airplanes. AD 2018-11-05 required incorporating a temporary revision into the airplane flight manual (AFM) and replacing the faulty power brake valve (PBV) upon condition. We issued AD 2018-11-05 as a short-term action to address the immediate need to detect and replace a faulty PBV. This AD retains the actions required in AD 2018-11-05 and requires replacing the faulty PBV with the improved part. We are issuing this AD to address the long-term corrective action and address the unsafe condition on these products.

We propose to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD) AD 2018- 04-09 for Pacific Aerospace Limited Model 750XL airplanes. This proposed AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) originated by an aviation authority of another country to identify and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI describes the unsafe condition as incorrectly marked and annunciated low oil-pressure indication warnings. We are issuing this proposed AD to require actions to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This document announces the availability of the Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) and Type Rating for Airplane Airman Certification Standards (FAA-S-ACS-11) for public comment.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA, the Agency, or we) is announcing the availability of a draft guidance for industry entitled ``Guide to Minimize Food Safety Hazards of Fresh-cut Produce.'' The draft guidance, when finalized, will supersede a previous guidance, entitled ``Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards of Fresh-cut Fruits and Vegetables,'' that we issued in 2008. The draft guidance is intended to explain our current thinking on how to comply with recently modernized requirements for current good manufacturing practice (CGMP) and with new requirements for hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls under our regulation entitled ``Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food'' during the production of fresh-cut produce.

This document corrects information in the proposed rule published in the August 24, 2018 issue of the Federal Register entitled The Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule for Model Years 2021-2026 Passenger Cars and Light Trucks. Specifically, a table in the Paperwork Reduction Act section is corrected; two minor changes are made to one amendatory instruction in NHTSA's regulatory text, and the coefficients specifying the proposed carbon dioxide standards in EPA's regulatory text have been corrected to reflect EPA's proposal to exclude credits for direct A/C emissions for purposes of compliance with carbon dioxide standards after model year 2020, as explained in Section III of the proposed rule. This document contains only clerical corrections and makes no updates to either the proposal or to the analysis underlying the proposal. For the reader's information, an updated Preliminary Regulatory Impact Assessment (PRIA) will also be made available concurrent with this notice; that document will include descriptions starting on the second page detailing the corrections to various tables and figures therein.

These amended special conditions are issued for the Boeing Model 777 series airplanes. These special conditions are for oblique (side-facing) seats, installed in Boeing Model 777 series airplanes, at an angle of 18 to 45 degrees to the airplane centerline and which may include a 3-point or airbag restraint system, or both, for occupant restraint and injury protection. This amendment adds a note and one special condition to the Special Conditions section. This airplane will have novel or unusual design features when compared to the state of technology envisioned in the airworthiness standards for transport category airplanes. These design features are oblique (side-facing) single-occupant passenger seats equipped with or without airbag devices or 3-point restraints. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.

This action proposes amended special conditions for the Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation (Gulfstream) Model GVII-G500 airplane. This amendment changes an error in a reference to a special conditions number and adds one special condition. This airplane will have a novel or unusual design feature when compared to the state of technology envisioned in the airworthiness standards for transport-category airplanes. This design feature is airbag systems on multiple-place and single-place side-facing seats. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend its spent fuel storage regulations by revising the NAC International NAC-UMS[supreg] listing within the ``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to include Amendment No. 6 to Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1015. Amendment No. 6 revises the CoC's technical specifications (TSs) to: Remove a redundant requirement for inspection of the concrete cask and canister; revise a limiting condition of operation (LCO) for heat removal to clarify that ``LCO not met'' means that the concrete heat removal system is inoperable; remove an inspection requirement that is already covered by LCO surveillance requirements for off-normal, accident, or natural phenomenon events; and clarify that ``immediate'' restoration of a concrete cask's heat removal capabilities means ``within the design-basis time limit'' in Section 11.2.13 of the Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR), ``or within the time limit for a less than design-basis heat load case, as evaluated.'' Amendment No. 6 also clarifies that an LCO for loaded cask surface dose rates applies prior to storage conditions, when dose rates will be highest.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish a temporary safety zone on a portion of the Delaware River in Camden, NJ. This action is necessary to protect the surrounding public and vessels on these navigable waters adjacent to the Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial, Camden, NJ, during a fireworks display on November 14, 2018. This proposed rulemaking would prohibit persons and vessels from entering, transiting, or remaining within the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Delaware Bay or a designated representative. We invite your comments on this proposed rulemaking.

We are publishing a new airworthiness directive (AD) for Bell Helicopter Textron Canada Limited (Bell) Model 429 helicopters. This AD was sent previously to all known U.S. owners and operators of these helicopters as Emergency AD 2018-16-51, dated July 26, 2018, which superseded Emergency AD 2018-15-51, dated July 20, 2018. This AD requires inspecting the tail rotor (T/R) gearbox installation, inspecting the T/R gearbox retaining hardware and support attachment point areas, and replacing each nut. This AD is prompted by two reports of T/R gearbox assemblies loosely attached to the gearbox support. The actions of this AD are intended to address an unsafe condition on these products.

This rule establishes, amends, suspends, or removes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures (ODPs) for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.